


i wanna be red

by markacademia



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: College, Friends to Lovers, How Do I Tag, M/M, Nakamoto Yuta is Whipped, Non-Linear Narrative, Oblivious Mark Lee (NCT), Road Trips, mark calls yuta oppa bc this is a yumark fic, they are high in one scene
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-29
Updated: 2020-11-29
Packaged: 2021-03-10 01:48:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,431
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27776374
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/markacademia/pseuds/markacademia
Summary: sometimes all you need to realize your feelings for your best friend is an impulsive roadtrip
Relationships: Mark Lee/Nakamoto Yuta
Comments: 5
Kudos: 79
Collections: NCT Bigbang Round 1





	i wanna be red

**Author's Note:**

> thanks to everyone who put up with me being awkward as hell, you are a real one <3
> 
> if some parts read rushed it is bc they are 👍

It’s the tension of the summer heat, Mark has convinced himself, along with the grey reality of job hunting and working for the rest of his adult life. He tells himself that is what made him agree to go on an impulsive road trip with Yuta.

  
  


Yuta's car is a vibrant red, and it is standing prominently in front of Mark’s porch. It is three in the afternoon and somewhere around 27 degrees. Yuta is casually leaning against the door of his car. A nice pair of sunglasses Mark once had gifted him perched on his nose.

“Hey, Markie!” He greets, a lazy smile on his lips as he sees Mark emerging from inside. Mark waves and starts walking towards the older boy, when he is close enough Yuta engulfs him in a big hug.

“How are you?” Yuta asks as he gives a few pats on Mark’s lower back before he lets him go. Mark smiles. Yuta always does this even when the weather is too hot for it and makes their skin stick together because they’re both sweaty. 

“‘m doing great,” Mark mumbles as he brings up one hand close to his face and tries to cool himself down a little. “It is kinda hot, though.” Yuta laughs. 

“Tell me all about it!” Yuta exclaims with an exaggerated sigh. “But lucky for us, the AC in my car is working perfectly” Yuta pats the front of his car. “But we should get going soon though before the sun starts heating my lovely lady up.” Mark lets out a loud snort.

“You sound like a middle-aged white dude with a failing marriage when you say that” Mark laughs. 

Yuta shoots him a wink. ”Who said I’m not a middle-aged white dude with a failing marriage?” He jokes making Mark giggle. Yuta winks at him before he turns semi-serious again “But are you ready to go?” Mark nods.

“My stuff is still chilling inside, but besides that, I’m ready!” Mark shrugs

“Let’s get it then.” They both walk inside Mark’s home as Yuta rants something about how hard it is to pack right. There are three bags in the hallway and a few clothes spread around them. 

“Can I help with carrying something?” Yuta offers.

“Yes,” Mark answers, but when he makes eye contact with Yuta he quickly adds a “please,”

“How polite, Mark Lee. Your mother has certainly raised you well.” Yuta teases. “Speaking of her, where is she?” He asks.

“Upstairs” Mark nods at the staircase and Yuta hums. “I’ll call her later” 

Yuta nods and crouches down, grabbing a big gym bag off the floor, it seems to be filled to the brim, and he is a little scared the fabric is going to rip if he handles it even slightly too rough. Mark grabs the smaller bags presumably filled with snacks and he swings them both on his back.

“Dude! What the hell did you stuff in here? Bricks? It feels like my arm is going to fall off!” Yuta exclaims loudly. Mark giggles but Yuta can see the tops of his ears heating up in embarrassment. 

“Clothes” He mumbles. “A lot of them.”

Yuta struggles with getting the trunk of the car open with only one hand since the other hand is way too occupied carrying Mark's overpacked and heavy bag. He succeeds after a small three minutes. It takes some to strategically place everything but then the trunk of Yuta’s car is filled completely and the trunk can be shut. 

They head back inside to grab the last few things and for Mark to say goodbye to his mother. 

“Mom!” He yells hoping she’ll hear his voice. Yuta is here!” They stand there in a few seconds of silence before they hear some steps and other movements from upstairs. Before they know it, Mrs. Lee is already downstairs.

Mrs. Lee almost immediately wraps her arms around Yuta when she sees him standing in the hall. “Hi,” Yuta greets her with a polite smile. She greets him back and lovingly pinches his cheek after she has let him go.

“It is so nice to see you again Yuta,” She gushes. The smile on her face is bright. “Mark has told me all about the little trip you guys are going to be making.” She goes on as Yuta nods. “You’re going to take great care of my little boy, aren’t you?” She laughs a happy chuckle before Mark can open his mouth to either groan or complain.

Yuta nods as he makes eye contact with Mark’s mother and nods. “Of course, I wouldn’t let anything happen to him, he is too precious,” He says with a straight and serious face. Mark feels blood rush up to his face he quickly diverts his gaze to the ground and chokes out a small cough.

Yuta laughs. “Are you ready to rock and roll, Markie?” He asks. 

“I was born ready”

“Alright then, let’s go!” 

Yuta holds open the front door so Mrs. Lee and Mark can comfortably pass and Mark can already hear his mom gush about how polite and neat the older boy is. Mrs. Lee goes first but when Mark walks by him he gets a tap on the butt. “c’mon we don’t have all day.” He teases.

Mrs. Lee gives Mark a hug and a quick kiss on his cheek as they stand right in front of the car, waiting for Yuta to open it. The older boy walks to the driver's side, clicks open the lock, and opens the door to get in. Mark pulls on the door of the passenger’s seat. The metal frame of the vehicle feels warm under his palm, and he hopes to dear god that his sweaty hands won’t leave any nasty prints on the shiny red polish. 

One of his backpacks stands in the seat and Mark throws it on the back seats of the car to take place comfortably. He fastens his seat belt as Mrs. Lee holds open the car door and leans slightly forwards to tell them to drive safe, take lots of breaks, drink enough water, eat healthy food and text them when they stop somewhere for the night.

Mark tells her he loves her and that she doesn’t need to worry about him so much. He plants a last kiss on her cheek before he closes the door with a slam and rolls the window down.

“Are you ready?” Yuta asks for the last time, and Mark nods. Yuta turns the keys in the dashboard and the car springs to life with some noise.

“Byeee!!” Mark yells, and he sticks both of his hands out of the window to wave at his mother.

“Drive safe,” Mrs. Lee yells for the last time as they finally drive away. Mark keeps waving till he can’t even see the silhouette of his mother on the horizon anymore before he gets both his arms inside and rolls up the window. He looks over at Yuta, who is currently staring right in front of him, focused on the road. 

Mark sinks in the seat and looks out of the window. The sky is blue, and there isn’t a single cloud in sight. There are barely any cars on the road, and the AC starting up is nice background noise. He sees Yuta fumble with a few buttons, and the stereo turns on. A cheery woman's voice comes through it to tell them the weather forecast. It looks like it’s going to be sunny in the next couple of days.

  
  


Yuta's hair is anime protagonist red when Mark meets him for the first time. It isn’t the first time Mark has seen Yuta. Yuta is a figure that’s hard to miss. His freshly dyed hair, his bright smile, and his entire personality almost force you to pay attention to him. 

When Mark meets Nakamoto Yuta for the first time he already has a good idea of who he exactly is.

Mark had been searching for Johnny to telll him he was going to call it a night and go home. 

When Mark sees Yuta chatting with Johnny the first thing Mark thinks is that he looks cool. He has a shit ton of piercings in his ears and it kinda reminds him of Ten. From one ear hangs a small dangly cross charm. Yuta has an eyebrow slit and is wearing some chains on his black baggy pants with big gaping holes on the knees. He also wears quite a lot of rings around his fingers. Mark can get a good look at them as the man brings his solo cup up to his lips to take a few sips of whatever’s in there. 

Johnny and Yuta are having what looks like an amusing conversation. Johnny is laughing as Yuta makes some weird hand gestures to explain a story and for a small moment Mark seems to forget why he actually came here. Suddenly Yuta points straight at Mark making Johnny turn around to see what he is looking at, in typical Johnny fashion he does it with a big twirl and waves enthausiastically at Mark when he sees him.

“Hey, Mark!” He says as he makes a motion for him to come closer. Mark complies and approaches them with an awkward thumbs up, when he finally is in arm reach Johnny grabs him, swings his arm around his shoulder and drags him to him. “This is my boy Mark,” Johnny introduces him to the guy he was talking to. His breath smells a little like cheap beer and cigarettes. “My brother from another mother,” Mark cringes but Johnny goes on, and the guy in front of them throws back his head to bark out a loud laugh while Mark looks down at the floor, to hopefully hide his warm cheeks. 

“I’m Yuta'' Yuta casually introduces himself. Mark holds out his hand for Yuta to shake it, but the redhead just laughs before he pulls Mark in for a hug. “Nice to meet you, dude,” He says. He smells like stronger alcohol and cigarettes. He and Johnny must have smoked one together. He is a little sweaty, but Mark probably is too. This is a party he reminds himself. 

“Johnny has told me about you.” He giggles, and when Yuta finally lets him go, Mark sees how Yuta throws a glance at Johnny and raises his brow the one with the slit. Johnny just shrugs before he takes another sip from the half-empty plastic water bottle in his hand, since when was he holding that? Johnny makes a joke about Mark throwing him under the bus and the conversation easily flows after that.

Yuta is new, Yuta has a fun personality, Yuta has a nice smile and an obnoxious hair color and surprisingly he and Mark hit off better than Mark expected. And they don’t meet only once. They meet each other multiple times after the party as well.

The first three meetings are accidents. Mark doesn’t really keep in touch with people he meets and talks to at parties. If they meet each other again, that’s great, but mostly it’s just a one-time thing, meeting each other through a common friend (mostly Johnny or Donghyuck since those two seem to befriend everyone around them) have a little fun and then it’s something to forget about. 

With Yuta, this doesn’t happen. They meet again in a cafe on campus. Mark does his usual thing when he sees someone he knows vaguely: smiling and giving a small nod before he goes to order his go-to. He pays for his drink and takes place in one of the seats in the corner of the shop, waiting for the barista to call his name. He pulls his phone out of his jeans pocket. Mark checks if he has any new messages (He has, but they’re all in the stupid groupchat Donghyuck had created with him and some other friends, and they’re nagging about all the assignments they have.). After that, he scrolls through Instagram and mindlessly likes some posts that appear on his feed. Suddenly there’s a shadow that’s blocking his light. He looks up, and Yuta is towering above him and looking at him with an intense gaze.

“Hey,” He says, “Mark, right?” Mark nods. “Great,” Yuta says as he takes the seat next to him. “How are you doing?”

Mark shrugs, “A little tired. I’m just waiting for my coffee,” Mark gestures at the bar where a few baristas are busy preparing drinks. “How are you?” Mark turns some so he can look at Yuta. Mark is absolute shit at small talk with people he doesn’t really know, but Yuta doesn’t seem to mind it. The other boy is already holding a see-through cup of ice coffee. He is just like at the party wearing a lot of rings. His nails are painted. All the nails are black except the middle one that is painted a bright red. He is wearing fewer earrings than at the party, but he is wearing a necklace with a key charm on it on his chest. Mark can see it clearly because Yuta has a few too many buttons open on his button-up to seem socially acceptable, but it’s okay at least he looks hot. or cold Mark thinks to himself it isn’t that warm outside, how are his nipples not freezing off? 

Yuta tells Mark all about his economics professor that is apparently shit about keeping his work and private life separated. Mark laughs a little when Yuta tells him some embarrassing moments about this man's life that he accidentally overshared with the entire class. Mark, his name gets called, and when he stands up to get his drink. He doesn’t expect Yuta to walk with him. He thought maybe that Yuta would go his own way after Mark's order got called. But there he is walking right next to Mark, now chatting about one of his roommates. Mark retrieves his drink, and Yuta walks with him from the coffee shop, still talking but occasionally taking a pause to take a sip from his beverage. “Do you still have class today?” He asks, suddenly surprising Mark, who just took a big sip.

He swallows fast. “Yeah, in about like…” He checks his watch, “thirty minutes.” Mark answers. 

“Aha,” Yuta nods. “Do you want me to walk with you?”

  
  


Yuta his nipples are red and slightly erect as the AC finally starts blasting at full force again and Mark has to force himself to keep his eyes on the road in front of them or keep his attention by the song that’s currently on. The speaker is playing one of his road trip playlists and Mark reaches for his drink that's standing in the cupholder of the car. He takes a big sip. His Cola had become watery and had lost most of his coolness, but it was refreshing either way. 

Yuta glances over at him. “Dude,” he says. “Give me a sip, I’m so thirsty” he whines. 

“Didn’t I buy you your own drink?” Mark asks with his right brow raised. 

“Yes, but…” Yuta bats his lashes. “Please” He opens and closes his mouth like a fish out of the water and Mark laughs before he holds the straw of his Cola light closer to his friend. Yuta connects his lips around the plastic. He glances over at Mark again before he swallows. “Thanks,” He says with a smile.

Their last stop had been by a McDonalds they found somewhere along the road. Mark had gotten them two large sodas: diet coke for himself and regular sprite for Yuta because sprite zero just isn’t it. Yuta had been waiting outside for him. He had told Mark he wanted to soak in the last rays of sun before the evening finally falls. With every step, Mark takes he hears the ice cubes clink against each other and the side of the big cups he is holding. 

Yuta stands against the wall outside. One of his legs is propped up as he leans against the red stones. He has his stylish sunglasses on and they cover almost half of his face. When he sees Mark approaching he drags his hand through his hair, his white tank top riding up and showing a little stomach. Yuta shoots him a flirtatious smirk. 

“Wassup baby,” He says in Yuta fuckboy fashion as Mark is closer to him. He swings his arm casually around the younger his waist and pulls him closer to him and Mark feels blood rush to his cheeks. He thrusts Yuta’s drink into the man's hand. Yuta laughs loudly, drags his hand through his hair again and sets his sunglasses on top of his head. “Thanks, dude” 

Mark looks down and wraps his lips around the black straw. The soda is cold and refreshing and he takes another big sip when he swallows the first one. Mark never had been a fast drinker. Whenever he drinks too much in a short time he catches the hiccups and Yuta makes fun of him. 

“Shall we go back to my car again?” Yuta asks and he nods in the way where the car is parked. 

“Yeah sure” Mark answers. Yuta puts on his sunglasses as they start walking back. Mark kind of wishes he had brought his with him right now. 

When they open the car doors they get immediately attacked by the heat. So they let them stand open. Yuta takes a few sips from his drink and Mark cleans out the cup holder between the driver and passenger's side. It is full of receipts that stick together, some change, a few crumpled dollar bills, and some pieces of gum that had managed to escape. Mark throws the money in the front pocket of his backpack and throws the rest outside. Mark places his cup in the holder and Yuta also finally takes place in the driver's seat next to him.

Yuta takes a last sip before he also puts his drink in the cupholder. Mark connects his phone with the Bluetooth radio system again. He hits shuffle on his playlist and his phone spits ribs by Lorde out. 

“Dude” Yuta laughs. “I asked for a road trip playlist, not a mental breakdown playlist”

Mark laughs as well. “Do you want me to put on something else?” He asks but Yuta shakes his head.

Mark looks outside, the sun is dropping and the sky is already changing colors. He slumps against the car seat already set back to give his legs a bit of extra space. He rests his head against the window and feels the bass of the song and the slight shake of the car as it drives over the smooth roads. Mark looks over at Yuta.

The older one is concentrated on the road. The sun's hue has turned his skin golden and it makes the occasional shadow that falls on his exposed chest even darker. Yuta reaches up to slide his sunglasses down from his forehead to his nose and Mark watches the muscles in his arm move. Yuta glances over at him quickly and Mark gives him a soft smile.

He takes one hand off the steering wheel and pets Mark his thigh a few times before he just casually lets his hand rest on Mark's upper leg. They drive a few miles like this, but Yuta’s fingers start to get restless and he starts tapping a rhythm. It tickles and Mark presses his hand on top of Yuta’s to make him stop. Yuta looks at him and smiles, his eyes curved upwards. He gives Mark’s leg a last squeeze before he retreats his arm. 

The light-up sign of the motel he and Yuta booked flickers. It says Motel in big bold red letters and the inner circle of the o had burned out.

Mark and Yuta make eye contact and Yuta just shrugs. He is wearing a shirt again. A simple white T-shirt with a v neck. Yuta parks his car in the parking lot nearby. He pulls the keys out of the dashboard and they get out of the car. The vehicle locks with a loud click and they make their way inside. 

Behind the counter is sitting a middle-aged blonde woman. She observes them as they make their way towards her desk. “Good evening” she greets them when they are close enough. She looks them up and down a few times.

“Good evening” Yuta greets her back with a bright smile as he sneaks an arm around Mark’s waist and pulls him a little closer. Mark also mumbles something back.

“How can I help you tonight?” She asks. 

“We’re looking to rent a room for two,” Yuta explains and Mark nods beside him. 

“For how long will you stay?” Yuta looks at Mark with a glint in his eye and a smirk on his lips.

“We’re only looking to stay for a couple of hours” Yuta laughs loudly and Mark splutters as he tries to not get into a coughing fit. His face is hot and warm. He tries to pry Yuta’s long fingers of him. “Just kidding” Yuta adds his head thrown back when he is still laughing. The woman gives them a tight-lipped smile. Mark divides his attention quickly to the ground and tries to calm himself. He tunes out of the conversation and only pays attention again when Yuta is presenting his credit card and paying. The woman hands them the keys and explains a few things about their breakfast in the morning. 

“We’re going to grab our luggage now, thank you” Yuta sticks the keys into the back pocket of his jeans. The woman nods and Yuta drags Mark out of the motel to his car. When they are outside Yuta begins laughing again. “Dude! You should’ve seen your face! as red as a tomato” Mark shoves Yuta away from him.

“Did you see that poor woman's face” Mark scoffs, he kicks a small loose stone and watches as it rolls over the ground. Yuta laughs. They’re only still a few steps away from his car. Yuta clicks it open and they get their bags out of the trunk. 

Mark drags his own heavy bag back inside. It feels like the thin straps are digging and cutting into his hand. When they get back inside the woman nods at them and Yuta walks straight to the small elevator right next to the staircase. Mark hadn’t even noticed it was there. The button lights up red as they press it and it only takes a few seconds before the silver doors slide open. Mark gets in first and immediately lets his bag fall to the ground. He rubs his hands together, it feels like his right hand is burning. 

The doors slide open again on the first floor. They both step out and Yuta drags his small trolley behind him as he fumbles with the keys to see what room number they have. The keychain is a big slab of steel with three numbers carved neatly into it. The hallway of the motel is clean. There are a few pieces of modern art that tell no particular story hanging on the walls and the lighting is white bright. Their room is almost at the end of the hallway and there is only one room after it. 

Yuta leans his trolley against the wall and unlocks the door. The door swings open and there is nothing to see. Mark has been in suites like these hundreds of times. A queen-sized bed with white sheets, two nightstands at either side both having a single lamp perched on it, and above the bed, there is a painting of a red-figure and a blue figure holding each other and where their hands are joined it has started to become purple. It is modern. The brush strokes are thick and not precise but at least this makes Mark feel something.

  
  


There’s red paint everywhere, on Yuta’s face, on his clothes on the tables, on the floor, and on his hands. 

“Hi hi!” Mark greets. Yuta looks up from the canvas he was painting on. 

“Hi, Mark” Yuta had texted Mark telling him he won’t be joining lunch with the guys today because he was busy adding the final touches to the painting he should’ve already finished two days ago. And Mark is a good friend and he knows that if he didn’t bring Yuta some lunch he wouldn’t eat anything at all. 

Mark stalks closer to Yuta. He is sitting on top of the table, his back is arched so he can view his own canvas better. “I brought you lunch!” Yuta finally looks up and his eyes widen when he sees Mark this close to him already. 

“Wait you can’t see it!” He hovers over the painting to protect it from Mark’s line of sight. “I have not finished it yet!” Mark takes a few steps back. Yuta could be quite particular about his unfinished paintings, feeling the need to perfect them before he could even think about showing them to the public. 

“Wait uhm.. could you please turn around? I’m going to leave the picture to dry '' Mark turns around and he hears Yuta shuffling around and a few items drop to the ground. Yuta walks slowly. Mark hears the metallic rattling of the drying racks and only turns around when Yuta claps his hands together. 

“Great! Thanks.” Yuta takes place on the table again this time facing Mark. He is leaning back on his arms and there are a few strands of hair hanging in front of face presumably having escaped from the simple black and white bandana he is wearing.

Yuta repeatedly pats the space right next to him signaling Mark to sit down at his side. Mark pulls a chair from somewhere close to Yuta and throws his bag on it before taking place next to his friend.

“I brought you lunch!” Mark beams. He leans over to grab his bag and shows Yuta the neatly packaged sandwich he brought from one of his favourite campus shops. Yuta reached greedily for it. His long slender fingers wrapping around the brown paper packaging. Mark notices how the silver nail polish is chipped.

Yuta likes dying his hair and painting his nails. Mark had allowed him to do his nails and hair one time. It hadn’t ended too badly, just a few blond streaks in his bangs and black painted nails. 

Yuta closes his eyes as he munches happily on his sandwich. “It’s really good” It sounds a little muffled as he says it in between two bites. When he finishes there are crumbs a bit of mayonnaise in the corners of his mouth. He wipes his mouth with his arm and it should be disgusting but it is fine. Mark just focuses on the crumbs that have fallen on the table. “Thanks so much,” Yuta says, he is always grateful.

Yuta yawns and he lets his head rest on Mark’s shoulder. Mark can hear almost every breath Yuta takes and the way Yuta wraps his arm around Mark’s waist to keep him close.

  
  


The sunlight filters light red through the ugly thin brown colored curtains in the motel. Mark lets out a small sigh as he wakes up. He brings one hand up from under the covers to rub at his eye. but apparently, this startles Yuta. Who tightens his hold on Mark’s side. 

Yuta is wrapped around Mark like a protective shield. Mark can feel the rising and falling of Yuta’s chest and his deep and heavy breaths fan over his ear. Everything around him smells like Yuta and Mark feels suddenly way too aware of how intimate this moment is. 

Mark tries to turn around and push Yuta away to squirm out of the man's steel grasp. Yuta exhales heavily through his nose as Mark tries to push his arm away from him. 

“Yuta” Mark whisper yells into the older man's ear to hopefully wake him up. Yuta groans lowly while tightening his grip on Mark’s body.

“Yuta” Mark repeats himself now prodding Yuta’s ribs. Yuta groans again and turns his head away from Mark but keeps his arms around him. 

“Five more minutes” he mumbles as Mark keeps prodding his ribs. “‘m so comfy, don’t wan to get up," Mark sighs but he stays silent allowing Yuta’s five more minutes. Yuta’s breathing doesn’t even out again but Mark says nothing. They both lay awake, bodies pressed close. 

  
  


Yuta’s eyes are red but so are Mark’s and he is pretty sure they both reek of weed. If anyone walked past them they would probably smell it but it doesn’t matter right now. because Mark is pretty sure he just said something funny and they’re both having fun. Yuta is throwing his head back and laughs really loud. His hands are clutching his tummy as he shakes with laughter. Mark laughs as well even though he is not really sure why. Yuta’s laugh must be contagious, Mark thinks with half a mind. His throat feels dry and he really can’t think clearly.

Johnny had invited them to a party Mark can’t really remember who’s party it is but it doesn’t matter right now. They are outside, sitting on the cold pavement with their backs against a wall and they’re laughing about… something.

When they finally come down from their laughing Mark’s voice is scratchy and his tongue feels like cotton in his mouth. But when he and Yuta make eye contact he can feel giggles rising up again. 

He, Lucas and Yuta had shared a blunt inside passing it while sitting on a shitty couch. It had been great until the place got flooded with not only other stoners but also regular smokers, making the air hard to breathe. Mark had begged Yuta to go outside. Lucas left them to get a drink and now here they were sitting on the dirty pavement. The stones feel rough under Mark’s fingertips and the coldness makes his hands feel kinda numb. 

“Dude, my hands are so cold” Mark looks at Yuta and grasps his hand. “Here feel!” Mark giggles as Yuta tries to pry his cold hands away. 

“My hands are so cold, please warm them for me oppa” Mark does his best to imitate a k-drama actress with big eyes and all and giggles as Yuta throws his head back to laugh again but he does let their fingers intertwine. Mark scoots a little closer so he doesn’t have to stretch his arm as much. Yuta’s nails are painted black but the polish has begun to chip at the edges, Mark thinks it still looks nice.

“I am cold.” He blurts out. Yuta scoots closer so they're sitting side to side. 

“I told you to bring a jacket,” He reminds him. Yuta is giving him the I told you so look and Mark rolls his eyes at him, his eyes are suddenly feeling droopy and heavy. Mark lets his head rest on Yuta’s shoulder. 

“Whatever” he mumbles. Yuta’s shoulders are kinda bony but it’s okay since Yuta’s other hand, not the hand that’s holding his comes up to comb through his hair. Mark blinks slowly his eyelids staying shut for longer times before suddenly

“Mark! Yuta! There you are!” Johnny’s loud voice makes his eyes fly open. “We were literally looking for you guys everywhere but we couldn’t find you!” 

“Oh my god” Jaehyun says “You guys are so cute together” Yuta has let go of Mark’s hand. The younger is rubbing his eyes trying to wake himself a little. 

“We are not together," Mark says and Jaehyun just laughs so Mark laughs as well because Jaehyun is a fun guy and he is still kind of high.

Mark steals a glance at Yuta but the older boy is looking down focussed the stray threads of the holes in his jeans tangling them with his fingers.

“Me and Jae are going home, you want a ride?” Johnny offers. Mark nods he came here with Johnny and really doesn’t have the money to get himself a cab or an uber right now

“Yuta?” They all look at the Japanese man. He nods

“Yeah, sure, thanks." Johnny shrugs

“No problem man”

The car ride back to their dorms is kind of awkward. Johnny and Jaehyun chat the entire time so it’s never silent but Yuta doesn’t say a word. They drop mark af first because he lives the closest

  
  


The light on Yuta’s dashboard is red, it is shining brightly as the night finally sets in. Mark doesn’t remember it shining. Yuta doesn’t seem to notice it. 

Mark is no car expert but he knows when some red lights start blinking on your dashboard it usually doesn’t mean any good. When he points it out to Yuta he doesn’t seem very bothered. He just shrugs it away after reassuring Mark that they’ll get it checked out at the nearest garage

So now they’re here stranded in some tiny town that’s like four hours away from the nearest big city and Mark just hopes they can get the car checked out here. He really doesn’t want to stand on the road with a car that has broken down

Luckily for both of them, there is a small car repair shop but it is already late in the afternoon. The man working there tells them they can leave their car there and that he’ll look at the problem tomorrow. Since the shop is closed now. 

They take their bags out of the car and he tells them about a b&b they can stay in and lucky for them it's all easily arranged. The owners of the place are really nice, telling them that they don’t have to pay the full price and promising to bring them breakfast in the morning. 

The b&b is cleaner and bigger than any of the motel rooms they have stayed in Mark notices. Yuta is already getting out his charger to plug in his phone. “I’ve got to text my mom," he says," she will definitely not be happy with this” Yuta sharply inhales through his teeth and makes a thumbs up. The thumbs-up is something he has adopted from Mark. 

Mark flops down on the neatly made bed. The sheets feel nice and crisp. “yeah definitively” 

Yuta lays down next to him. “Now it’s only really a waiting game, till she calls me and scolds me” he jokes. Exactly after he says that his phone starts buzzing loudly. Yuta makes a scared face at Mark and picks up.

The immediate Japanese yelling is what gets to Mark and he tries to hide his giggles in his fist. Yuta blushes as his mom continues yelling. Yuta starts pacing around the room. Saying some things Mark can’t really understand.

When Yuta is finally done with the call he looks at Mark kinda sheepishly. “She says I need to treat you to a nice dinner to make up for the scare” Mark laughs. 

“Now when you mention it, I am kind of hungry” Mark rubs his tummy and he pouts at Yuta. 

“Let’s go then, I think I saw a nice place not too far from here” 

They end up eating in a small but cozy restaurant. The waiting staff is nice and the food is fine. Yuta pays and Mark waits outside, sucking on the peppermint he stole from the counter. The sun is starting to set and it colors the sky beautifully. Yuta wraps his arm around Mark’s waist when he comes outside. 

“Wanna go for a little stroll?” He asks, Mark nods. Yuta intertwines their hands as they start walking. The town is calm and there is almost no one out. They make a stop at a green hill and Yuta pulls out his phone to take some pictures of Mark making him pose. 

“C’mon Mark do your sexy model pose!” Yuta calls out and Mark ignores him to sit down. The grass feels soft under his hands and he closes his eyes. The last rays of sunlight warm his face. “Mark, Markie, Mark” Yuta calls again but the younger just ignores him. Soft grass is the only important thing right now. 

Yuta comes to sit down next to him. His head resting on Mark’s shoulder. Mark opens his eyes to look at Yuta. Focussing on the dark roots in his hair and the way his skin seems to glow under the sunlight. 

“Mark” Yuta says at the same time Mark calls out his name. They are silent for a few seconds.

“I love you," Yuta says, his hand resting on Mark's thigh. 

“I love you too," Mark says. “Hyung, I think I am in love with you” It has been on his mind for a while now. Yuta retreats his head from where it was leaning on his shoulder to look at him. Mark feels his eyes well up with tears. 

“I’m sorry” He splutters, his voice weak.

“Mark, I think I am in love with you as well” Yuta’s voice sounds soft and small. He puts his hand on Mark's cheek. “I think I have been for a while now.” Yuta’s eyes are kind of watery as well and his smile is kinda weak but it makes Mark’s heart flutter. Mark's face is becoming red as Yuta presses a kiss to the corner of his mouth but he is mostly happy that he doesn’t have to feel blue anymore. 

  
  


Yuta’s lips are red and swollen when Mark pulls away. Their lips are shiny with salvia and sensitive from their make-out session. There is a rosy blush on Yuta's cheeks. Little pants spill from Yuta’s lips and Mark watches his chest heaving up and down with every breath. Yuta is holding him by his lower back and Mark can feel his own hand getting kind of sweaty in the back of Yuta’s neck but he can’t get himself to really care as he pulls down the other boy to connect their lips again.

“Yuta, I don’t want this trip to end” 

“We can make a detour, I still have some places I want to show you” Yuta squeezes his thigh, smiles like that and it makes Mark wonder how he could ever say no to him. 

Mark’s cheeks burn up red but it is okay since red is totally his color. 

**Author's Note:**

> thanks for reading, sorry if it was bad, i tried my best


End file.
